Filed to story: Seventeen Heartbreaks: When Love Has No Voice
Having filled Gracelyn in about Landon and Sarah’s past, a note of bitterness crept into Leila’s voice.
“I’ve longed for a divorce for as long as I can remember. It’s painfully obvious he doesn’t love me. He probably loathes me. Our marriage is nothing but mutual torment. But he refuses to grant me a divorce, stooping so low as to use my children as leverage. If it weren’t for that, I would have taken my kids and left him in the dust long ago. My nightmare was about him snatching them away from me. I was at my wit’s end.”
Gracelyn scrutinized Leila, searching for any hint of deception, and determined that Leila’s distress was genuine.
Gracelyn exhaled softly, her voice shifting to a gentle, yet subtly manipulative tone.
“Yes, Landon is indeed a despicable man. It seems we share a common enemy. In that case, we’re allies. Now, sweetie, don’t hold what I did against me. I was backed into a corner. I know you’re Landon’s wife, and now you’ve stumbled upon my little hideaway. After all these years, all I crave is a quiet life. I’m terrified you’ll run back to Landon, and he’ll come hunting me down.”
As the words tumbled from her lips, Gracelyn maintained a gentle caress on Leila’s leg, feigning remorse and empathy.
Leila, however, felt nothing but revulsion. Gracelyn’s saccharine words were clearly intended to elicit forgiveness for drugging her. Forgiveness was out of the question, and Leila wasn’t about to feign it. After all, an overly compliant demeanor would only arouse Gracelyn’s suspicion.
True to form, Gracelyn didn’t react with anger to Leila’s stony silence and dark expression. Instead, she pressed on with her persuasion.
“I know you’re seething with resentment. Let me help you. I may not be able to do much, but I genuinely want to make things right. You lure Landon here, and I’ll take care of him. You can grab your kids and make a clean escape, finally free from his clutches.”
Gracelyn’s offer was tempting, dangling the illusion of freedom in exchange for Landon’s arrival.
But Leila wasn’t fooled for a second. She knew that if Landon showed up, she’d be trapped. Gracelyn’s sweet talk was just a smokescreen. She never planned on letting Leila go.
Leila knew too many dark secrets about Gracelyn.
Though Gracelyn seemed slightly unhinged, she was actually clever and cautious in her actions.
While Leila inwardly groaned, she looked at Gracelyn with a mock surprised expression.
“Gracelyn, really? Can you actually help me?”
With a warm nod, Gracelyn responded, “I cradled you as a baby. I’ve cherished you as if you were my own. I will exhaust all resources before I let anyone hurt you. So, tell me, can you bring Landon here?”
Gracelyn’s eyes, though clouded, held a glint of hope and a subtle trace of threat, giving her a slightly intimidating aura.
Leila nodded first, but then slowly shook her head. She smiled bitterly.
“Landon doesn’t love me. Whether I exist or not doesn’t matter to him. If it did, wouldn’t he have searched for me after my disappearance all these days? I can’t be sure.”
A shadow flickered across Gracelyn’s face as she saw Leila’s crushed spirit, but she kept her thoughts to herself.
“It’s fine. There will be more chances in the future. For now, try to rest,” Gracelyn reassured her.
Leila nodded, but she couldn’t sleep afterward. Her mind buzzed with plans for what to do next. Unfortunately, her legs weren’t cooperating. She found herself only able to walk by clinging to nearby objects for support. She was aware that recovery was inevitable, but time was a luxury she didn’t have. Even if she regained the ability to walk freely, escaping from the White family estate seemed unlikely.
In this place, no one used electronic gadgets, and the Whites had installed devices that jammed all mobile and internet signals. She was completely cut off from the outside world.
Leila’s biggest fear was that if Calvert decided to come check on her unexpectedly one day and discovered her legs could move, it would spell disaster for her.
Leila was skeptical about her ability to deceive Calvert. Although he had a rather distasteful character, his medical expertise was undeniably sharp. If Calvert found out she had lied to him, all the plans she had meticulously crafted would unravel.
After a sleepless night, Leila felt dispirited the following morning. She was tired of being confined to her room and requested that a servant take her outside to bask in the sunshine.
It was only under the warm glow of the sun that Leila found a bit of solace.
Soon, another week passed.
Leila stuck to her routine, but the servant tasked with wheeling her around was clearly disgruntled.
The servants found taking care of Leila burdensome and wished she would just remain indoors.
After barely a few minutes in the garden, the servant was already showing clear signs of impatience.
Leila felt the servant’s displeasure was dampening her own spirits, so she said, “Take me to the lake and leave me there alone for a bit.” The servant seemed relieved by the request. She quickly pushed Leila to the edge of the lake, made sure Leila wouldn’t fall, and then left promptly.
With the servant gone, Leila breathed in the crisp, fresh air. She had another motive for sending the servant away. She needed a chance to carefully study the White family’s estate..
To her delight, over the past week, Leila discovered that her legs were recovering well, allowing her to walk freely, though running was still a challenge. Her recovery was progressing better than she had anticipated.
Typically, Leila requested the servants to take her out not just for fresh air, but to examine the layout and internal structure of the White family’s estate.
The White family’s house, steeped in traditional aesthetics, wasn’t fully equipped with modern features, complicating any potential escape route.
Usually, the servant only took Leila to the small garden and never beyond.
Once Leila was certain she was alone, she slowly stood up, exercised her limbs, and began to explore. With the presence of signal jammers, she wasn’t concerned about surveillance cameras.
As Leila walked, she spotted an open door at the back of the house. Her heart raced at the sight.
Through the doorway, she could see a small village where children played beside the road, but none seemed to venture close to the White estate.
Leila knew that if she chose to dash out now, call for help, or borrow a phone, she might finally break free from this hellish place.
However, these thoughts remained just that-thoughts, as she had no intention of making a run for it. The timing was wrong, and more importantly, she suspected this was a test.
Leila took a long, hard look at the door before deciding to walk away. Her instincts proved correct. Shortly after she left, guards arrived to inspect the door. They confirmed that no one had escaped and sighed in relief.
One of the guards grumbled, “Why does Mrs. White insist on such tedious checks? We’re even required to patrol outside. Wouldn’t it be simpler to just keep a direct watch?”
The other guard responded, “Mrs. White doesn’t trust Leila and is convinced Leila will try to escape. Personally, I think Mrs. White should just give Leila a drug that will paralyze her permanently. That way, there’d be no more worries. Though Mrs. White claims Leila is still of use, she has also said that if Leila attempts to flee, she might just resort to paralyzing Leila forever.”
“Yes, a permanent solution.”
Leila, hidden from their view, overheard their entire conversation. She felt relieved she hadn’t acted rashly. Otherwise, she would have been doomed.
Leila began to think that the nearby village might largely be inhabited by relatives of the White family.
When Leila first arrived, something had seemed off. The area was so remote and hard to reach, yet the village was not destitute. Each home had a car and a small villa, though the population was sparse. It appeared that most of the villagers were there because they worked for the White family.
This meant that even if Leila escaped, she wouldn’t find any help in the village.
Realizing nearly ten minutes had slipped by, Leila understood she could no longer linger. She quickly retraced her steps to her wheelchair. On her way back, she caught snippets of a conversation from a room close by.
“Is this really going to work? I feel like the risk is too high,” Calvert said. Leila paused, scanned her surroundings to make sure no one was nearby, and noted that her wheelchair was right where she had left it. Since the negligent servant hadn’t come back yet, Leila took the chance to listen in on the ongoing discussion.
Florrie sounded sure of herself.
“Don’t worry. I’m very confident. Mrs. White’s grandson is her weak spot. If technology allowed, she’d resurrect him. It’s her obsession. Since technology can’t help, she’s reverted to old beliefs and superstitions. Haven’t you seen how she’s embraced various mystical practices recently?”
Calvert was still uneasy.
“But still, what we’re planning feels like trickery. Is it really reliable?”
Florrie spoke in a hushed tone.
“Hold on. Let me lay out my plan completely.”
As Florrie spoke, Leila’s eyes grew wider with each word, and she struggled to believe what she was hearing. Florrie had concocted a daring scheme.
For years, Gracelyn had grieved her late grandson and sought comfort in profound spiritual dedication.
Over the past two years, Florrie had poured money into creating a fake spiritual advisor. Gradually, this advisor had won over Gracelyn’s trust.
Now, Gracelyn wholeheartedly trusted the advisor, who convinced her that her charitable actions had earned her grandson the opportunity for rebirth through reincarnation.
The advisor promised to notify Gracelyn when her grandson chose a new body to be born into.